


This Time With Feeling

by NadoHunter



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Batman: The Animated Series
Genre: Angst, Arguing, Couple fighting, Hurt/Comfort, Leaving Home, M/M, Mental Anguish, Mental Health Issues, One Shot, Pre-Batman - Freeform, Pre-Canon, Short One Shot, break-up, kind of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-15
Updated: 2020-03-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 17:14:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,534
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23160790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NadoHunter/pseuds/NadoHunter
Summary: Harvey and Bruce are nineteen, fresh out of high-school, and Harvey thought he'd escape and spend all of college and potentially the rest of his life with his best friend and boyfriend.Except, suddenly, it turns out Bruce is leaving... and when Bruce tells him Bruce suddenly gets a glimpse of a whole other side to Harvey he had no idea was there.
Relationships: Harvey Dent/Bruce Wayne
Comments: 3
Kudos: 54





	This Time With Feeling

**Author's Note:**

> Some bruharvey angst I wrote on a cloudy day based on the idea of the fallout that would come from Bruce leaving to train to become Batman and leaving his best friend and in this case boyfriend behind that has his own issues going on as well.

"You're... leaving??"

"I know you wanted us to stay together Harvey, and I'm sorry it's so sudden but... It's... something I just _have_ to do."

Bruce was so used to Harvey being so patient. So... unaffected by things. Maybe he had taken that for granted, maybe deep down he just assumed the other man would be fine with whatever he did.

Which was what made the look of betrayal edging on seething red-hot **_rage_** so jarring.

"Why? Why do you _have_ to leave?? I thought... you.... we were going to go to college together, we were going to _be_ together... and suddenly, you just want to _leave_?! What is so important that your willing to throw everything you said we were going to do together out the window?!" He bit back, tone rising into an shout that Bruce had never _ever_ heard come out of his best friend before.

He took a step back, feeling just the slightest bit ashamed, the slightest bit worried he was doing the wrong thing... but his mind was made up.

"Please, you have to trust me... I wouldn't do this if I... didn't feel I had to. I just need to go... away from Gotham, away from here for a little while."

"Trust... why would I trust you when _apparently_ you can't even tell me what's going on! Why won't you tell me what's happening?!" Harvey shouted back, beginning to slur his words together as he became more emotional.

"I... you... you wouldn't understand..." Bruce said defensively, turning away from him.

This seemed to be the absolute wrong thing to say. Bruce had already been worried about the anger, but now he was even more worried about the deathly silence that now followed his statement.

"What did I do to you??" Harvey muttered quietly.

"You didn't do anyth-"

"No! I must have done something, because all you seem to do is shut me out! And I'm tired... I'm tired of being treated like I don't matter! Like how I _feel_ doesn't matter!" He shouted.

Bruce whipped his eyes back to him. "Harvey! I just... where is this coming from? You didn't do anything! None of this decision has anything to do with you!"

" **Obviously** , You've made that PERFECTLY clear, its easy to just abandon me, isn't it?! Because I'm disposable, right? You keep me around until you decide you just don't care or need me anymore. I guess, maybe being together didn't mean as much to _you_ as it did to me."

Bruce stared at him completely baffled as his eyes started fogging up with his own anger. "Why would you even _think_ that of me? Think I don't care!? You think this isn't hard for me too?!"

" **I'm surprised you feel anything at all honestly.** " He hissed, and for a moment, Bruce felt like he wasn't even looking at his boyfriend or his best friend anymore... but someone else entirely.

"Why... do you really... think I'm that...." Bruce stammered, chest heaving. "I don't... I don't think your disposable.. Harvey... I ... I really do lov-"

" ** _Bullshit_** _._ **You don't love me. You never did. Don't pretend you care now when you've already decided I mean less to you than whatever the fuck you think you """need""" to do** _"_

Bruce could feel himself shaking. He wasn't going to cry, but he couldn't help shaking. Was this it? Did he... really just loose his best friend for good? Harvey's voice had dipped down into a gravelly tone that seemed so bizarrely outside of his normal soft, quiet speaking manner, it was seething with pain and hatred, dripping with snake venom and ready to _bite_ anything that remotely threatened him. It was almost hard to believe it was even happening... but it was.

"Ha...Harvey... I ... It's not like I'll be gone forever. Just because I'm leaving, doesn't mean I'd... I'd never want to see you again. I didn't... I didn't think..." Bruce took a deep breathe of air, finding it progressively harder to breathe. "I... I just... I need to be away from Gotham, I need to feel stronger, better, I _have_ to do it on my own. I... I wanted to leave so I _wouldn't_ drag you into my mess, I... I wasn't trying to abandon you... I won't leave... I'm sorry I..."

Something about the way Bruce had begun to spiral snapped Harvey out of his blind rage, almost like a switch had been flipped and whoever that person was that had been talking had left again, leaving the Harvey Bruce was used to in his place. Harvey rushed forward and grabbed Bruce's hands

"No... No .... no Bruce, I'm sorry, I got upset, you should... you should go, if its what you need to do. I'm sorry I freaked out and said..." Harvey scanned Bruce face as if he couldn't quite piece together what had actually happened. "...anything that was really mean."

Bruce looked down at his feet. "I didn't... mean to make you think I don't care about you..."

Harvey paused and took a deep breathe. "I know you care, I do. I promise. I wish you would tell me about why you have to leave but..." He went quiet for a moment as he pulled Bruce into a hug. "It's not like I'm completely honest _all_ of the time."

"...I've never seen you that mad..." Bruce mumbled under his breathe

Harvey let out a steam of air through his nose. "I know... which... maybe... maybe that's why you leaving might be a good thing for that reason..."

Bruce looked up at him. "Why? I mean... its normal to get angry, it surprised me, but I don't blame you... probably deser..."

Harvey shook his head. "No! No... you really don't. Please don't ever think you _deserve_ to be talked to and treated that way. I... need to be away from home and I need to sort some... things out. I don't want to take what I'm going through out on you."

Bruce wiped at his eye that was slightly damp despite tears never fully streaming. "Yeah... that's... kind of what I meant about why I thought it might be good to leave too, for me to not do the same thing to you... I don't want to take out what I'm going through on you just because I haven't sorted it out yet."

Harvey studied Bruce's face and nodded. "Yeah. Yeah you... do what you need to do. I'll be okay."

"Are you sure?" Bruce asked again, griping at his own arm, not entirely convinced given the way Harvey had just _snapped_.

"Yeah. I'm sure. Besides... I'll probably feel better once I'm moved out and starting college classes."

Bruce hummed. Sometimes, Harvey would mention not wanting to be home, or how excited he was to move out - whenever he pressed him on it Harvey would always say something about "Oh... you know... they're just bad at keeping things clean and I can never have people over..." and shrug off the subject. Though sometimes he wondered... if there was something else going on... But Harvey never really wanted to tell him, so he stopped asking.

 _"_ And hey, on the bright side... maybe once we're through college maybe things will get better and we could actually you know... tell people we're together..." Harvey said a little wistfully. "And go on dates in public like other couples do..."

Bruce squeezed his hand. "I hope so... I'd like that."

 _"_ **Yeah... me too pretty boy...** "

That same gravely voice popped up again, but it sounded... kinder this time. Bruce raised his eyebrow at him.

"You've never called me _that_ before."

"Huh? Called you what?" Harvey asked looking back at Bruce completely surprised.

" _Pretty Boy_ , you called me Pretty Boy, that's a new one." Bruce said, slightly amused.

"D-Did I?" Harvey said looking completely baffled.

Bruce nudged him. "And you make fun of me when I play dumb."

"Hah...haha, yeah..." Harvey said before looking away again.

"...We'll be okay Harv, I know we will." Bruce said quietly, leaning against him, coming down from the emotional high of their small fight.

"... yeah..."

* * *

Harvey was there when Bruce was finished helping Alfred help him pack up to go on a private jet, which Harvey sometimes laughed at because "I swear to god your a nineteen year old with a private jet and you barely go _anywhere_ ". Which before, Bruce might have answered "Where would I go when your here?" As a teasing reply and Harvey would say "You could always be a good boyfriend and take me somewhere fancy."

But now... Bruce was going somewhere. In his mind, he wanted to say he'd visit and call often, but with what he had to do, with what he had _sworn_ to do... he had a pit forming in his stomach that maybe... this night would be the last time he sees Harvey in a long time.

"I'll miss you." Harvey said, hugging him tightly.

"I know... I'll miss you too." Bruce replied quietly.

"If you don't call me regularly, mark my words I will _kick_ your ass." Harvey teased.

Bruce laughed despite the feeling of dread forming in his stomach.

"I'll call, I promise." He lied.


End file.
